Whether you’re pitching an up-and-coming brand, raising the profile of a little-known executive, or promoting your business in a new market, the process always looks the same in the beginning: countless pitches go out the door with very few media requests rolling in.
Until momentum starts to build, it's hard to gain the kind of traction that will have journalists who ignored you initially replying back. Or new journalists and outlets reaching out to see if they can ask you a few questions.
So the question becomes, what is the most strategic way to inspire the initial momentum? Read on for 3 key points you should remember when considering media requests.
How Do You Choose the Best Media Request?
1. Consider your business priorities
2. Research the journalist & their track record
3. What is the relationship at play?
When you’re proactively pitching a story to the media, you’ve got a clear objective. It might be unveiling a new product, doing some PR damage control, or announcing a new hire.
But when you’re assessing requests the other way around, the objective isn’t always as clear.
What might seem like a straightforward interview request from a respected publication could turn into a reputation-damaging story without proper vetting.
So how do you figure out which ones to go for and which ones to pass on?
1) Consider your business priorities
Incoming PR requests are like big shiny objects—they look pretty but can be enormously distracting.
The purpose of any solid PR strategy is to align all activity with a specific business goal. This prevents wasted time and effort going towards the shiny objects and keeps you on track.
Check out the Guide to Data-driven PR for more in-depth discussion on modern PR strategy.
When your inbox starts getting noisy with requests, here’s the first and most important question you want to hash out with your team: "What are our short and long-term business priorities? Does this request fit in to these?"
If you've had a recent announcement or media flurry, you're likely seeing an influx of incoming PR requests. If you are focused on further promoting the news, then attention should probably be paid to these requests, further vetted by the next two points.
2) Research the journalist & their track record
For any of us who have lived through managing a brand PR crisis, we know that the old adage “all publicity is good publicity” is completely false.
When you pitch announcements proactively, you’re more likely to accept opportunities with hard-hitting reporters. But as requests roll in, you have the ability to be more selective.
Thoroughly research each and every journalist that sends a request (even if they’re just asking for a comment or statement).
Check their social media updates. Google their past coverage. Look at their LinkedIn profiles. Use a media database to track down their history of covering your industry and brand, their beat, their story and angle preferences, and any other noteworthy tidbits you can find about their work.
Is their coverage aligned to the type of reporters you trust? Let this answer guide your decision.
3) What is the relationship at play?
No one needs to be told that PR is an industry built on relationships.
The final thing to take under consideration is who the request is coming from. Have you been building a relationship with the journalist or media outlet? Is it a reporter you have a good rapport with? If the answer is ‘yes,’ it’s an easy yes. If it’s not a journalist or media outlet you care to forge a relationship with, politely decline.
As your pitching efforts take off, stay away from the knee-jerk reaction to accept each one that comes your way. In the long run, it’s far more strategic to say no to those that don’t align with your brand values or business priorities or those that don’t further important industry relationships.
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